Stitch gauge



July 9, 1940.

| J. BARRICKMAN STITCH GAUGE Filed Aug. 25, 1938 L. fiarrz'cEma n Patented July 9, 1940 uNi'rEo sTATEs PATENT OFFICE Application August 25,

8 Claims.

This invention relates to an improved stitch forming gauge for buttonholes adapted to be worn on the left thumb and to be employed for uniformly spacing the stitches relatively to each other and for forming said stitches of a uniform length.

More particularly, it is an object of this invention to provide an article adapted to be worn on the left thumb and provided with a calibrated plate having a straight edge adapted to be placed along the buttonhole to be stitched, the calibrations on said plate being spaced to' correspond to the proper spacing of the stitches, said edge adapted to be spaced from the buttonhole so that the stitches formed may be of the same length and equally spaced relatively to each other.

Another object of the invention, is to provide a stitch gauge having a socket portion adapted to removably engage the thumb and provided with a concavo-convex intermediate portion adapted to fit the rounded part or ball thereof.

Still a further object of the invention, is to provide a stitch gauge having means to frictionally engage the cloth to prevent itfrom moving relatively to the buttonhole formed therein; and cutting edges formed on said article and adapted to be employed in cutting the threads used in forming the stitches.

It is the aim of this invention to provide an article of the class described of simple construction, capable of being economically manufactured and provided with means whereby it may be adjusted for properly fitting onto a person's 33 thumb.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will hereinafter become more fully apparent from the following description of the drawing, which illustrates a preferred embodiment there- 40 of, and wherein:

Figure 1 is an enlarged front elevational view of the article, showing it before being shaped to fit the thumb,

Figure 2 is a rear View in elevation, similar to Figure 1,

Figure 3 is a front elevational view, on an enlarged scale relatively to Figure 1, showing the gauge after being bent to form the socket for engaging the thumb,

Figure 4 is a side elevational view of the gauge as seen in Figure 3,

Figure 5 is a sectional view taken on the line 55 of Figure 3, and

Figure 6 is a perspective View, on a reduced 55 scale, showing the gauge applied to a thumb.

1938, Serial No. 226,833

Referringv more particularly to the drawing, wherein like reference characters designate like or corresponding parts throughout the difierent views, l0 designates generally the gauge which includes the socket member I! and the meter plate I2 formed integral with and projecting from one end thereof. The socket member it as seen in Figures 1 and 2, is in the form of a blank which is flat and provided with the enlarged concavo-convex intermediate portion i3 and with the reduced ends I4 forming wings which terminate in the curved portions 55 which extend downwardly and inwardly. The socket member I l is formed from any suitable material which may be readily bent and which 1 will retain the shape into which it is bent, so that the wings l4 may be bent inwardly toward each other and into the shape as illustrated in Figures 3, 4 and 6.

The meter plate I2 is formed integral with the socket member I l at one end of its widest portion and is connected by the relatively narrow portion l6, intermediate of its ends, to prevent it from bending with the wings M. The plate i2 has a straight edge I1 disposed substantially at right angles to the axis of the gauge ill, said plate being provided with the calibrations is extending to the edge I! and adapted to indicate the proper spacing between the stitches which bind the buttonhole. Adjacent the opposite ends of the plate I2 are provided the arcuately shaped sharpened edges 19 forming cutting blades adapted to be used to cut the threads used in stitching.

As best seen in Figures 2 and 4, the gauge ill is provided with the serrated portions 23 and 2| on the convex outer side of the portion 13 and on the back of the plate I2, respectively, which are adapted to prevent the gauge 18 from sliding when in use.

From the foregoing it will be seen, that the wings I 4 are adapted to be bent inwardly toward each other to engage around a persons thumb to thereby form the socket H. The size of the socket llmay obviously be varied, depending upon the extent to which the wings M are drawn' inwardly relatively to each other, thereby enabling the thumb socket H to be adjusted depending upon the size of the thumb to be accommodated. As seen in Figure 6, the thumb is inserted so that'ithe ball of the thumb rests in the concave side of the portion l3 and so that the portions l5 engage theintermediate part of the thumb nail to mount the gauge I El thereon. The gauge 10 is mounted, prefer-ably on the left thumb and is then rested on the material in which the buttonholes are being made, not shown, with the serrated portions 20 and 2| frictionally engaging the material and with the edge H of the meter plate I2 extending along one side of a buttonhole which is about to be stitched. The edge I! is spaced from the buttonhole opening to define the proper length of the stitches and so that by extending each stitch up to the edge l! the stitches will be formed of a uniform length, and by spacing the stitches to correspond and aline with the calibrations IS the stitches will be made at proper uniform intervals so that all of the stitches will be of the same length and the same distance apart. After a buttonhole has been stitched the leftover thread may be cut-ofi by engagement with the sharpened edges l9.

In Figure 6, the gauge I0 is illustrated substantially in its actual size, but obviously the sizes may vary without in anywise affecting the underlying principle of the invention, and the proportionate sizes of the socket member H and the meter plate l2 may be varied relatively to each other if desired.

Various other modifications and changes may obviously be made and are contemplated, as only a preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described, and the right is reserved to make such variations and changes as fall within the spirit and scope of the invention as hereinafter defined by the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. A stitch gauge comprising a socket member adapted to engage the end of a thumb, a meter plate formed integral with and projecting from one end of said member and provided with a straight edge disposed substantially at a right angle to the axis of said socket member, said plate being calibrated along one of its sides and contiguously with its straight edge.

2. A stitch gauge for forming buttonholes comprising a member having an enlarged concavoconvex intermediate portion adapted to receive the end of a thumb, said member having tapered ends to form wings, said wings being bent inwardly toward each other, to form a socket with said intermediate portion, to engage around the thumb to removably retain the article thereon, and a measuring element formed integral with and projecting from one end of said intermediate portion and provided with straight edge disposed substantially at a right angle to the axis of said article and adapted to be positioned parallel to a buttonhole to be stitched, said element being calibrated to define the spaces between the stitches of said buttonhole.

3. A stitch gauge for forming buttonholes comprising a socket member adapted to removably engage a thumb to support the device thereon, a meter plate formed integral with and projecting from one end of said socket member and provided with a straight edge disposed substantially at a right angle to the axis thereof, said plate being calibrated for gauging the distances between the stitches.

4. A stitch gauge for forming buttonholes comprising a socket member for engaging the thumb, a meter plate projecting from one end of the socket member and provided with a straight edge to be disposed in spaced parallel relationship to a slit in a piece of cloth, to be stitched to form a buttonhole, to gauge the length of the stitches, and the upper side of the meter plate having spaced markings along its straight edge for gauging the space between the stitches.

5. A device of the character described comprising a body portion curved to form a split sleevelike member open at opposite ends thereof and tapering longitudinally, said body portion having a shallow recess formed therein, and tapering in width from the recessed portion thereof to pro' vide a pair of wings terminating in a pair of forwardly extending fingers lying substantially opposite said socket on opposite sides of said split and a flat plate-like member extending from one edge of said body portion having a straight edge and a scale on said plate-like member adjacent said edge.

6. A device of the character described comprising a body portion curved to form a split sleevelike member open at opposite ends thereof and tapering longitudinally, said body portion having a shallow recess formed therein and tapering in width from the recessed portion thereof to provide a pair of wings terminating in a pair of forwardly extending fingers lying substantially opposite said socket on opposite sides of said split and a flat plate-like member extending from one edge of said body portion having curved cutting edges at opposite sides thereof.

7. In a measuring device of the character described, an open-ended sleeve-like finger embracing portion having a finger receiving socket therein, and tapering to form a pair of adjacent nail engaging members substantially opposite said socket and cooperating therewith to prevent rotation of said finger embracing portion on a finger, and a fiat measuring plate extending from said finger embracing portion, and said device having means thereon for holding said measuring plate from slipping on the surface with which it engages.

8. In a measuring device of the character described, an open-ended sleeve-like finger embracing portion having a finger receiving socket therein, and tapering to form a pair of adjacent nail engaging members substantially opposite said socket and cooperating therewith to prevent rotation of said finger embracing portion on a finger, and a flat measuring plate extending from said finger embracing portion, and said device having means thereon for holding said measuring plate from slipping on the surface with which it engages, comprising a roughened portion on the under face of said plate and on the convex outer face of said socket.

LAURINDA J. BARRICKMAN. 

